Articles by: Sammy Stein

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Pixies – ‘Indie Cindy’ (2014)

Don’t let the name fool you: These Pixies are raucous, loud and sometimes vulgar.

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Peter Brotzmann, John Edwards, Jason Adasiewicz, Steve Noble – Mental Shake (2014)

This is what free jazz is all about. Period.

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Wilko Johnson + Roger Daltrey – Going Back Home (2014)

On Boxing Day 2012, I sat in my friend’s lounge enjoying a post-Christmas get together and the company of other friends. One of them was a music producer, and inevitably we got talking about music, groups he had managed and personalities. He told me that Wilko Johnson was doing veryRead More

Barb Jungr, jazz singer: Something Else! Interview

Barb Jungr, jazz singer: Something Else! Interview

As this exclusive interview shows, there is a lot more to the songstress Barb Jungr than her magical voice.

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For UK jazz scene, a bold return to vibrancy: ‘Things, for a while, were not looking good’

Not so long ago, the UK jazz scene looked like it was in trouble. Audience numbers were dwindling and it became harder for musicians to get gigs, especially for those new on the scene. You May Also Like: Paul Jolly, free jazz musician, club owner and producer: Something Else! InterviewRead More

Barb Jungr - 'Hard Rain: The Songs of Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen' (2014)

Barb Jungr – ‘Hard Rain: The Songs of Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen’ (2014)

Combine Barb Jungr’s voice with the powerful songs of Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen, and you have something with mind-blowing potential.

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Books: Being Here: Conversations on Creating Music, by Rhadika Philip (2014)

When I was told I was being sent a book of interviews with creative, inspirational musicians, I thought it might be something I might dip into now and then, leave on the shelf for a couple months and re-visit when I felt like a bit of inspiration. You May AlsoRead More

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‘Dark, full of gallows humor and devilment’: Graeae’s confrontational ‘The Threepenny Opera’ delights

Not quite opera, not quite rock ‘n’ roll but certainly worth more than three pennies: The Threepenny Opera — being staged by Graeae with Birmingham Repertory, New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich, Nottingham Playhouse and the West Yorkshire Theatre Company — is a re-write of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill’s The Beggar’sRead More

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John Edwards finds inspiration everywhere: Something Else! Interview

Asked what inspired him, jazz double bassist John Edwards has an instant reply: “Everything inspires, musically.”

Cafe Oto Has Helped Transform East London: 'Very, Very Good For the Music'

Cafe Oto Has Helped Transform East London: ‘Very, Very Good For the Music’

By day, it is just another cafe. However, at night Cafe Oto is a very different place.